Mind the Gap

The Mumble

' Mind the gap ', a phrase I met when I lived in London, used to warn persons traveling via the tube of the gap between the platform and the train. Colloquially, it is also used to describe a bloke who is broke..he uses the train as the main means of transport, not able to hail a taxi. But I digress. For the purposes of this entry, I use it to describe what is about to happen to a friend of mine who has just decided to date a girl significantly younger than himself...SIGNIFICANTLY. If he doesn't 'mind the gap', no doubt he will fall into that black hole and cause serious injury to himself.

She is mature beyond her years (of course), we like the same things (envision a short list), she makes me happy (what is happiness to you?!), on and on it goes...


THE GRUMBLE

Who am I to say it will not last? Life is full of surprises and everyone has the right to chart their own course.....yada, yada, yada. It's gonna end in tears! There, I've said it! As they grow together, she will come into her own at the same time he becomes a grandfather figure. Right now, there is no danger of that happening since he is far from looking and behaving like a granddad but, you get the idea. So, unless she has 'daddy issues', she is pretty much gone.

ENDING UNKNOWN

Given the vast age difference, I know there's a good chance it may not end well, he says. I am well aware and my eyes are wide open, he pleads. Sigh.

So there, men are always optimistic, particularly when it concerns younger women. Or maybe, practical. Sure, happiness, even for a short time is better than none at all. But why run into the on-coming train if you see it coming?

I have to say, I admire it. Kinda. After all, to jump takes guts.